#☾⋆⁺₊⋆ {verse} trapped beneath these bones

[witchnordemon]

⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ TAG DUMP

[witchnordemon]

Collector did notice how disinterested Golden Guard seemed in what they were trying to get him to talk about, and he quickly began rummaging through his thoughts, thinking desperately for a conversation topic to keep their friend here, when... he announced he should go.

They were prepared to launch into a spiel about all the cool things that they still wanted to learn, when Golden Guard confirmed he would at least be back when he could... which, who knows how long that could be with Philip keeping him busy all the time.

They wanted to fight it so bad. They didn't want him to leave again. But he said he would be back the last time too, and he hadn't lied then. He probably wouldn't lie this time either... hopefully.

❝ Yeah, yeah, lots of... stuff. To do. ❞ He nodded, sulking only a little bit as his shadowed self returned atop his disc prison, prepared to return to the mind-numbing, voidal nothingness of the in-between once more. ❝ Next time, for sure... ❞ They repeated, soon as they saw the tablet cover come into view - as if holding him to his word, ❝ ...I'll make you tell me about mortal stuff and math. ❞

"What, pain . . . ? Yeah, that's um. A thing to let you know something is wrong with your body I think. So you can do something about it. Get a cut healed or something."

He sighed, reaching under his mask to scrub the tears out of his eyes. "Um. Sure, yeah." He sighed again as he dropped his arms and looked out towards the window. ". . . I should go." He looked back at the Collector. "I'll . . . be back when I can. But I need to go. Things to do, y'know." Not that he'd actually be doing any of those things.

He went over to his bag and checked to make sure he had his things packed away, mentally swearing when he saw the stand in there. He'd completely forgotten to put the Collector's tablet on the windowsill while they talked. Augh. Fine. Whatever. He'd do it next time.

He closed his bag and swung it around his shoulder, then grabbed the cloth that went over the disk. "I'll, uh. See you next time?"

[witchnordemon]

He nodded with excited vigor - the idea of further carving a new identity for himself... it felt good to think about, to choose his own path while he was stuck here, something good to remember this time by, with the help from his new friend no less.

❝ Do you have any lists? Books? ❞ They inquired with a tilt of the head. ❝ Like, of Boiling Isles names - I wanna look at 'em first, get an idea of what's cool. ❞

The topic switch to Titans had them beaming, then frowning, which was then accompanied by a slow raise of the eyebrows when Valor explained his way of thinking; of why Papa may have felt threatened by Collector's seemingly innocent and fun game.

❝ Tha- that doesn't make sense, of course I'm good, the Titans are my best friends, of course I know what I'm doing... ❞ Collector voiced, quieter than usual and much moreso to themself than Valor. But... as much as he knew he would never try and be mean or hurt the Titanlings... what his friend was saying actually did made sense. Valor was an expert on the beasties of the Isles. Even though he had never met a Titan, he was smart about this stuff; about how animals around him felt, so... he was likely onto something. Maybe Papa really didn't know that it was just a great big fun game, and he just got overprotective of his babies, so - he wasn't mad at Collector, right? It was just a big misunderstanding?

Their eyes widened, looking back at Valor properly and thumping a hand against their other palm. ❝ Valor! You prob'ly got it! Maybe he didn't understand the rules of the game! ❞ They concluded, tapping a hand against their chin. ❝ He thought I was playing too hard, or didn't know it was all just make believe, and no one was getting hurt - and he wanted to protect them. ❞

Collector deflated with a hunch of his shoulders. Now they felt kind of bad. They couldn't truthfully say they ever gave real thought about how Papa might have felt. They thought he liked them, since he let them live with his kin for so long... but maybe he just got mean 'cause he was scared, or unsure. Heck, Philip did that sometimes, too, and as much of a sourpuss he could be, they knew he didn't really mean it.

❝ ...I wish I could just... talk to him. ❞

Valor smiled up at him. "Tell me if you ever decide you want to be called that, then. Or anything else."

It would almost be . . . fun, if they did decide to take on another name. Then they could both switch to names neither of them had known the other by before. Something just for them. Something they shared together.

"Maybe he didn't know you wouldn't?" Valor offered. He sat back, placing his hands in crossed legs as he thought. "Like. You said it was the last titan. I don't know if it's the same for titans, but like . . . Have you seen the parents of young beasts? The ones that actually raise their kids instead of just letting them fend for themselves.

"Like . . . they get super territorial. Even if you're someone they know is good! You're never supposed to get near a mom with kits unless you really, really know what you're doing 'cause you could get maimed just for being nearby.

"And like . . . Like if all the titans were disappearing on him, he was probably terrified. He wouldn't want his kid to disappear, too. So he might not have been wanting anyone to get near them. And if you were actively seeking them out, maybe he saw that as a threat. Even if you couldn't hurt it, you could steal it away. You didn't mean any harm, but he didn't know that, so he lashed out in fear, you know?"

[witchnordemon]

He hesitated, taking a second after his unaddressed greeting for Collector to remove himself from his spot along the wall, gliding closer to where their friend was. Hmm. He had done the downwards ear thingy again... was he unhappy?

Made sense - mortals needed to do their whole sleeping thing, it wasn't just for fun or leisure, the way Collector had dabbled in it in the past. If Valor didn't do enough of it... maybe he was cranky.

They eyed Valor as he murmured, and then wordlessly slunk down to the ground. Yup, definitely cranky. Though, very quietly cranky, they noticed. He didn't seem annoyed, or frustrated, or any of the other cool emotions Collector had come to recognize in recent months. No... this was different. New, strange, weird...

Uncomfortable.

They seated themself across from him, looking him up and down once more. ❝ ... What's gotcha so sleepytired? ❞

Valor winced at the volume of the Collector's voice. It grated at his ears, and they flattened some to lessen the assault. Luckily it didn't last long, and the rest of the Collector's words were at their usual volume.

It took him a moment to process them.

"I know," he muttered, not thinking to actually answer the question. He hadn't, in fact, done much sleep lately. Night was when the worst of the thoughts came for him, lying in bed doing nothing, so he tried to avoid it as much as possible, distracting himself with work and study. Until his body shot him down and he wasn't able to so much as get out of bed without prompting, like had happened today.

Slowly, he slid down to the floor and sat against the leg of the table. He was here now, as he'd promised to do, but he had no idea what to say. He hadn't even brought anything this time. He probably should have done that, shouldn't he? Stupid.

[witchnordemon]

❝ Yeah, we can travel long, long distances, and collect beings that are close to going away... and find a better place for them somewhere... someday. ❞ He ended, with a touch of uncertainty. Such circumstances were probably rare, but the idea of waking a mortal up from a nice long nap and giving them a perfect, brand new place to play forever seemed wonderful to them. After all, while collecting things was fun, getting to interact and play with them was much better - he'd know, it's exactly how he felt about Titans.

A noncommittal hum was Collector's response to the idea of a "mate", something they now knew Titans didn't have or need. Or did they? Titans could and often would choose to raise their babies with other Titans, even if they didn't need help having the eggs in the first place. Was that... different? Maybe it was - they'd have to inquire more into the topic, it was fascinating to hear all of this new, cool stuff about mortals.

He nodded to confirm Golden Guard's words, ❝ Yep, I'm from wayyy up there, ❞ he gestured up at the ceiling of the room they were in, ❝ I, um... don't remember a whole lot. Just what I said before - the sky, how it never changed, but there were so many stars and planets, and my siblings, and how they collected beings but didn't let me do it. ❞ He huffed, though... recalling and saying all this to someone brought back that similar aching feeling in their chest again. They... definitely missed it to some extent, and their siblings. Although he was always a tad upset at not being taken as seriously as the rest - he would do anything to see them again, for them to come back for him.

The despair that had been welling up in them dissipated at Golden Guard's reassurance. He wasn't going to leave them forever. And he wasn't going to forget about them either. He even - he even said he would come back. Even though he said it could take a while, he promised... and besides, lying in wait for what seemed like eons wasn't something unfamiliar to them in the slightest.

Collector exhaled a breath they weren't aware they were holding in (or that they had the ability to do?) and clasped their shadowed hands, looking at him from their place atop the tablet they would be retreating into shortly.

❝ I promise I won't tell.. Philip, or Lord Belos, or forget about you, neither. I can wait a long time - I'm really good at it! And while I wait, I'm gonna try my best to remember every cool thing I ever knew. I'm- I'm gonna think so hard about everything cool about Titans, and all my bestest stories. And you can tell me all about your favorite beasties, or about math... and I'll listen. ❞

". . . In the cosmos?" How did they even get up there? Were there places out there up in the cosmos that actually had similar enough environments to here that creatures could survive in them?

Aside from . . . that whole confusion, though, Valor seemed to accept their explanation. Ideally one shouldn't take any individuals from a dwindling species in the first place, lest that exacerbate the problem, but if it was for restoration purposes and they could eventually find a better place for them, then that was far better than just collecting them for the sake of collecting them at least.

He listened in fascination as they continued answering his questions about titans. Some of these creatures he knew were old, old species, such as the selkidomus and trash slug. Others he didn't. Ratworms, griffins, and giraffes all existed during the age of the titans? That was incredible. He wondered if they'd at all changed since then. But he didn't have the time to ask any more questions. Next time, maybe. If there was a next time.

"It means . . . Yeah, it basically means being able to lay and hatch eggs individually without the need for a mate." He wasn't going to go into the technical stuff with this kid. That's all he really needed to know right now.

"You're from the stars?" Valor asked, incredulous. Well, if he used to live in the stars that at least made finding where creatures could be moved to in the cosmos make at least a little more sense. Ohhhh he was going to have to ask more about the Collector's species as well when he had the time to.

Oh titan. Okay. Okay. Any uncertainty he had about not coming back was gone just looking at how pitiful the Collector looked right now. He couldn't in good conscious just abandon them like that. Alright, fine.

He wondered what funny word they were talking about though- Oh. The swear. Yeah sure he could teach them that.

"I promise not to forget about you," he told them. "And . . ." he took a breath, "I promise to come back. But," he emphasized, "Lord Belos keeps me very busy and it might not always be safe for me to come here, so it might be a while before I can, okay? But I'll try."

[witchnordemon]

As Golden Guard continued engaging and interacting with him, Collector's earlier panic continued to subside as they realized he wasn't in such a hurry to leave anymore. Still, he didn't want to risk letting a lull in conversation drag on, to potentially offer an exit to this visit up on a silver platter. What if he didn't come back?

...And what was there left to say?

❝ ...Y'know, the littl'uns would get real bad aches in their bones when they started to grow, ❞ He settled on, playing with his shadowy sleeves. ❝ It happened a bunch, because they could get so big, but I didn't ever get it back then, maybe it's just.. another organic lifeform thingy. ❞ They paused, risking a glance back up at Golden Guard before them.

❝ Um, and - maybe you could even tell me more about these mortal quirks sometime? ❞

"I . . . guess?" Valor said cautiously. He didn't exactly know anyone that wasn't mortal, aside from the Collector himself.

He sniffled as he tried to figure out the context to their questions. "The . . . point of headaches, or crying? I don't . . . I'm . . . pretty sure everyone gets a headache at some point in their life but crying-" A shaky breath. "-crying doesn't always result in one."

He didn't feel like talking much more. He was no longer panicking, but he was tired, and he wanted to just go back to his room and collapse. He should work on studying, but he didn't want to do that either. Maybe he could train Hope a little more, though . . .

[witchnordemon]

He waited for a response, unsure if he was going to even get one due to how out-of-it Golden Guard seemed... but lo and behold, he did answer them.

Huh. So it didn't hurt to cry, but it could make you get...

❝ Head-aches, ❞ Collector repeated back slowly, ❝ which hurt. That's a mortal thing too, right? ❞ They continued, half because they were legitimately very curious about mortal being's oddities now... and half because they hoped asking more questions (which he said were okay!) might stall for time and keep him from dashing off on them.

He rose from his spot flush with the floor to again appear upright in front of Golden Guard, raising a hand and tapping the center of their forehead mindlessly.

❝ Does everybody get headaches? What's even the point, if it hurts? ❞

His breath continued shuddering, and he continued staring at them in silence. He was taken completely off guard by this and didn't know what to do.

But . . . the Collector wasn't scolding him for crying, or being weak, or anything like that. The Collector didn't even seem to know what crying was.

And . . . he wasn't sure he wanted to tell him. Not when it would reveal how weak he was for letting himself do it. The Golden Guard, crying? Absurd. No one was meant to see that.

Their second question confused him, though. Who would think that crying hurt? He really did know nothing about this, huh?

He took a shaky breath and said, "Um-" but his voice cracked with the word, so he swallowed down the mucus, took a few more breaths, and tried again.

". . . No. No, it uh- I mean sometimes you can . . . can get headaches afterwards but actually doing it doesn- doesn't hurt."

[witchnordemon]

❝ It's a mortal thing, right? ❞ They prompted again, swirling around Golden Guard slowly as they continued their tried and true method of just... moderately bull-in-a-china-shopping their way through a social situation. ❝ 'Cause I never saw a Collector do it. ❞

He'd seen a few of the littl'un Titans do this before, but never knew what it meant other than being unsatisfied, because either an older Titanling or Papa would come and do something to make them stop.

Hmm.

Hesitantly, they steeped their fingers, and raised an eyebrow.

❝ Does it... hurt? ❞

Valor startled when the Collector spoke, his cries immediately silencing. But his breath was still shuddering and his gaze darted around, trying to find the Collector - before startling again when he found him immediately in front of him on the floor and scrambled back a few feet.

"I-I, u-uh," he stammered.

[witchnordemon]

The Collector continued his sulking, not responding as Golden Guard continued doing that kooky mortal choky-noise shaky thingy. He was prepared to just... wait it out, to sit back and let the Grimwalker in front of them finish his little thing, but... he didn't.

Anger and betrayal changed into annoyance, then to confusion, then to... curiosity? Slowly, ever so slowly, he moved from his place in front of the window and shifted his shadow until he was flush with the floor in front of Golden Guard. Puzzled, they tilted their head, trying to get a look up at the Grimwalker and figure out what was going on. He was still curled up on himself, hiding his face and making those noises.

Finally speaking again from his place on (in?) the floor for the first time since the whole uncomfortable, foreign ordeal started, they hesitated to voice what they wanted to ask.

❝ ...What is that? What's going on? ❞

Valor stood in silence, his breath hitching as he cried, trying to come up with some reason for why they hadn't been outed yet. But if Belos could talk to the titan, he'd definitely want him to tell him if there was an intruder in the forbidden rooms, so if the titan at all cared about telling Belos of such things, why didn't he yet?

Valor had only been here once before, but the Collector had been here for ages. If the titan didn't tell Belos of them . . .

He had no response to the Collector's question. And the Collector was still . . . not quite actually in the way of the window but it felt like it, like he was being blocked, because it would require going near them.

So instead he just fell back against the wall and slid down to the floor, voice muffled by mask, arm, and cloak as he wailed.

[witchnordemon]

Collector froze in surprise, not even sure how to react to Golden Guard's complete demeanor change for the first few seconds. He had been so excited to finally have someone to listen to him, to ask him things, to let him ask them things - and now here he was, with who he thought was his friend shoving all of his things in a bag and trying to flee - Golden Guard wanted to leave - he was going to be alone again.

❝ Wha- Huh- Why, what are you- WAIT! DON'T GO! ❞ They cried, voice breaking, shifting over to the window as fast as they could manage, extending his arms against the walls - like that could do anything to stop Golden Guard from leaving them once and for all. His eyes were wide as he futilely attempted to block the window with his shadow, hyperventilating as though such a thing should even be possible for them.

❝ I thought we were friends! What's going on? What happened- why are you- you can't leave, please don't leave! ❞ They pleaded, sounding far more panicked and desperate than they liked.

"Oh." Valor's voice cracked.

The Collector's questions were lost in a flurry of movement as Valor scrambled to gather together everything he'd brought and shoved it back into the bag.

"I should- I need to go- If Bel-" STUPID, use the title, you're being watched! "If Lord Belos can talk to the titan and the titan tells him about this he's going to kill me. I can't- I have to go."

Oh titan oh titan oh titan he was SO dead- He darted to his feet and extended his staff, ready to leap out the window immediately.

[witchnordemon]

Once again, the Collector was reminded of how he had never been this fulfilled by a conversation in his long, cosmically unfathomable life. So many times, his siblings or those around him simply nodded along to what they were saying to get them to stop talking, or just outright told him they didn't care about his ramblings. But Golden Guard was so consistently interested in Collector's stories and all he had to say, it was incredible.

He was starting to feel like Philip was wronger than anything about Grimwalkers. Or maybe, he just hadn't played with one this nice, ever, but... still.

❝ Oh! They're aware of most stuff going on around them, ❞ Collector began, trying to choose their next words carefully, ❝ I've heard they're able to communicate in different ways, to like... people they think they can trust, or who really understand them. It's not always another Titan, but it usually is. ❞ He thought back to the few times he tagged along with Papa's crew to visit the Titan Catchers' Titan, and Papa and many of the littl'uns had been adamant about being able to talk to him and interpret him.

Though, no matter how hard they tried to focus, to use their admiration for Titans as a starting point, to really believe that it was possible to connect and reach out... Collector themself could never manage it, no matter how long he tried. It frustrated them then, and remembering it again, knowing that Philip could do it, frustrated them still.

The revelation of there being dormant Titans all over this mortal planet caused their resolve to deflate quite significantly. As much as they didn't want to think of it as true, Golden Guard had no reason to fib to him, right? So... that meant that it had well and truly been a very long time, and more than a few of his old friends were likely in a deep, deep sleep now. His expression fell, fidgeting with his hands. If he couldn't even connect and talk to the Catchers' Titan, could he ever hope to talk to his old buddies again? Would they even remember him after all this time? ... Would Philip be able to talk to them for him?

This new development upset him, but now that Golden Guard had confirmed his knowledge of other Titan landforms, they had no reason to hold back from the barrage of questions they had held their tongue on.

❝ So, you do know about dormant Titan lands - when did Belos tell you about them? And, and- exactly how many are there? ❞ He swirled around Golden Guard, sore about the prior subject matter but excited to get answers to things he wanted to know, from someone who outright told them it was more than okay to ask. Maybe, they could even find out which of his friends were sleeping now. ❝ Have you ever visited one? ❞

"Why wouldn't I?" he asked. "Learning all this about titans . . . It's fascinating."

. . . The thought of Belos' lies to the Isles being partially true, of the titan actually being able to hear them, was not a comfort to Valor. What things might he have heard, what muttered complaints or breakdowns in his room did the very ground beneath his feet know about? Was that actually able to relay that all to Belos? His uncle was the most powerful magic user Valor knew of. Could he actually speak with the titan? He'd confirmed to Valor, ages ago, when he was first learning to proselytize, that he couldn't, but . . . Belos had lied about plenty of things in the past. Could this be yet another?

Valor was not on board with whatever shenanigans the Collector might have wanted to cause. His voice took on an anxious tone as he asked, "The titans . . . when they're dormant . . . if they're aware of everything around them, can they- Can they communicate any of that to people living on them?"

They didn't know what happened after dormancy. There had been a titan already dormant with people living on it however long ago it was that the Collector had seen it, and there were certainly no skeletonized titans up and about right now. Titans lived ages ago, in another era. Surely there'd have been some that had come out of dormancy at some point, if dormancy wasn't death. Or at least tales of giant skeletons walking around, or countries destroyed by a titan awakening.

If their hearts were still beating and they were still aware, but none came back up . . . Maybe it wasn't so much dormancy as a very, very slow death.

He'd already begun shaking his head at his question, but then the Collector changed it to a different one, and he had to actually explain his answer. "No fuzzy moving ones, no. Only dea- . . . dormant ones." He was not going to risk making him mad again. "But yeah, there are titan skeletons all over the world, usually with people living on them. I mean, I haven't seen any of them, personally. But I know what countries are made of them." Squint. "I think there's at least one mountain on the continent nearest us that's also a titan."

[witchnordemon]

❝ Well yeah, but I've never gotten to talk and think all about Titans this long! I like to think about Titans when they're all tiny and furry and friendly, not old and bonely and lonely. Besides, ❞ Collector half-shrugged, ❝ I didn't think you'd think about it too much! ❞ They retorted, almost too nonchalantly, far too enthralled with this new puzzle piece to even dwell on this accepted truth; that very few ever considered the implications of things he said. ❝ Ooh, so if Papa's dormant, I wonder if he hears us right now, ❞ They proposed, breezing past the prior thought as they cupped a hand to the side of their head, ��� disturbing his sleep. ❞

He drew out the last syllable and flashed a mischievous grin, fully prepared to launch into shenanigans, when Golden Guard posed another question - a good one... that, well, Collector once more didn't have the answer to.

❝ I, uh... I'm not sure. ❞ They confessed, puffing non-existent air into their non-corporeal cheeks. ❝ I never met a Titan that old to know what happens way after they lay down. I mean, I did see one before who was almost all bony, but mortal lifeforms were... ❞ He trailed off, not finishing the sentence aloud. Also living on it; the Titan Catchers. They lived on a dormant Titan, too. At that, Collector paused. Golden Guard had never seen another Titan, right? Surely, the Catchers' Titan wasn't that far away that Philip wouldn't bring the Grimwalkers or tell them about it, right? Oh no, were they even supposed to tell him about that? They would have started panicking a bit about letting something like that slip, but... considering the idea actually gave Collector some hope. That if Golden Guard didn't know about dormant Titans at all... maybe they were really rare. Maybe... all of the other Titans were simply archived away. It would be a lot, but they had to have been. There wasn't another option - they got so big, and if it had been so long, all of the Titans would probably be dormant now too - but Golden Guard made it sound like there certainly weren't big sleeping Titans everywhere. ❝ ...You said you'd never seen a Titan, right? ❞ They attempted to distract redirect, uncertain but hopeful. But... Golden Guard knew a lot of things, he was real smart for a Grimwalker. He'd probably know this. ❝ Um, y'know... awake? Fuzzy and running around and playing? So what about other sleeping Titans? Are there any other Titans like... him? ❞

He . . . He didn't even realize that that was a possibility for what could have happened? "I mean . . . You just said that titans become skeletonized when they're dormant, and we live on the skeleton of a titan, so if they don't die then it only makes sense that that's what happened?"

Although. If the titan of the isles was just dormant . . . And they were living on it- him, apparently, according to the Collector . . . "What uh. What happens . . . after dormancy? When it ends?" To be dormant was to pause, rest, with the potential to start back up again. If there was a cycle of titan life where they moved around while skeletonized . . .

Well, that spoke danger for everything currently living on it.

[witchnordemon]

Collector was about to protest, to say that taking a name before he'd truly earned it could be... he didn't know how to word it, like... lying? But... then Valor explained himself - explained that his own creators probably named him what they did because they wanted him to aspire to it, to live up to the expectations they put on him.

He was certainly no stranger to having older figures in his life putting similar expectations on him, and, well... since they weren't here right now, would it really be so bad if he created his own expectations to strive towards? Especially if that was normal for a lot of the Isles inhabitants, who - whether he liked them all or not, he was stuck with for the foreseeable future.

... It wouldn't be the first time a kind resident of the Isles bestowed him with something from their own culture; of how they referred to one another... there were no other Collectors he had ever met that were referred to as "he", after all.

❝ Explorer, ❞ They slowly repeated, testing how it felt to say aloud. ❝ That's... that's a neat idea, 'mgonna think about it. ❞

Collector grinned when Valor mirrored their own previous thoughts, about how no one could tell them otherwise right now, and they did actually mentally file away the idea of adopting a Boiling Isles name someday - they needed to think about that one more, maybe ask Valor to bring in a book sometime soon for them to look through... if they did that, it had to be something they really liked.

Then, his head snapped up, eyes widening in horror at the thought of hurting a sweet baby Titan egg. He wasn't super familiar with the concept of pain, but he'd heard enough indignant squeaks of Titanlings when an older, bigger sibling stepped on a paw accidentally to grasp a baaasic idea.

❝ I would never! ❞ He cried, folding his arms. ❝ Papa's a big stupid dummy if he thinks I'd ever hurt a baby in it's egg. ❞ They huffed, gaze dropping to the floor. ❝ ... 'sides, Titan eggs are way too hardy for that, they could be fine through basically anything. ❞

Valor sat in silence for a while, contemplating. The Collector wanted a role, a thing, not just a name. But they couldn't do anything to gain such a thing while trapped.

He hummed, before venturing, "What if you took a name not that you've currently earned, but that you hope to? Like . . . I don't remember who my parents were, what their intentions actually were, but names like mine are often given in the hope that the person will eventually live up to that. So my parents probably named me in the hope that I'd do things worthy of valor in my life."

He tried to ignore the feeling of deep guilt at that. He'd always considered training to be the Golden Guard and succeeding on missions as fulfilling that, as living up to his name. But if Belos was wrong . . . If Belos was wrong then he'd have been doing the exact opposite of that.

It made his guts squirm.

"So what if you did that? What if you took on the name of Explorer now, in the hopes of eventually earning it in the future?" He shrugged. "It's not like there's anyone here to tell you otherwise."

"Ooooor," he added, "you could take on a Boiling Isles name. Those don't have to be earned."

The rest of what they said intrigued him, though. "The last titan?" Imprisoning the Collector between realms seemed like such a drastic thing to do to win a game. But if he was keeping them from his egg . . . "Maybe he thought you were going to hurt it?" If it truly was the last titan and he thought the Collector a threat for some reason . . .

[witchnordemon]

That idea... made him feel a lot better. That Philip didn't tell him, because he just assumed Collector's intelligence and vast knowledge meant he'd already known. It was maybe a little unrealistic, but... ❝ Him thinking I knew... I guess that makes sense. ❞ He answered, all traces of his previous anger gone - content and reveling in the idea, for now, that Philip might assume Collector to be more capable than he treated him sometimes. Because he was smart, and he did know a lot of things, and his interest and knowledge was definitely not heavily skewed towards- ❝ Titan! ❞ They exclaimed, ❝ You're right, that's probably it! He's not "dead" or "dying" or anything lame, he's just dormant! ❞ They tapped their hands upon their cheeks a few times, seemingly invigorated by this train of thought. ❝ If I've really been locked away a long long time, it makes sense he's resting now! He was old, even back when I played with his babies, so - ooh, that makes so much sense! How'd you even think of that? ❞ They asked, turning their gaze back towards Golden Guard with a grin.

"Well . . . Maybe he didn't know you didn't know? Maybe he didn't tell you because he thought you knew."

His breaths were few and far between. Mainly just holding them in unless he needed to talk. Tense. But . . . the Collector was . . . okay? He wasn't mad? Or maybe the apology just worked . . . That was odd. It didn't usually, with Belos.

It was such a quick mood change that it disoriented him, though. What exactly had just happened? He wasn't sure. He had to be careful, though.

Did titans' hearts really keep beating after they were skeletonized?

Tentatively, he asked, "Is . . . that happening with this titan?" Was the heart of the Boiling Isles still beating?

[witchnordemon]

❝ Well... no- ❞ They confessed, a little more honest than usual given that they were flustered, ❝ I mean, he doesn't tell me everything, but usually it's 'cause it doesn't matter - something so big like that matters! And he wouldn't... it doesn't make sense not to tell me! ❞ In the midst of his (extremely confusing) emotional responses, both internal and to the Grimwalker in the room with him, he continued pacing his shadow along the farthest wall, lost in thought and mentally rehearsing how to breach the topic with Philip when he saw him again, when... he noticed silence from the other, and turned his attention back to him.

Hmm. He was doing that ear thingy again, but... did he just apologize to them? Nobody ever apologized to Collector, not for misunderstanding them, or for being mean to them, or doubting them, or being dismissive, or really anything. Golden Guard really was one of the kindest Isles inhabitant they had ever met.

❝ It's okay! ❞ He responded giddily, returning to his previous position; perched atop the disc in front of Golden Guard, all evidence of his previous frustrations seemingly dissolved. ❝ You didn't know, I guess a lotta witches and demons don't know everything about Titans! That's why I'm here. ❞ He continued on with such excitement, an almost 180 degree mood turnaround - as if what just happened didn't happen at all. ❝ Their... yeah, their hearts, they still work when a Titan goes dormant, and the Titan is still aware of what happens around 'em. I never saw another mortal do anything like that. ❞

"The sky was green and the water cold before you met Philip? Are you sure?" He was pretty sure changes like that had to have happened ages ago. He knew for a fact it was already boiling in the Hecktaceous Period at least. The sky he wasn't sure about, though. It'd been cloudy.

Valor's breath caught in his throat, his ears flicking down sharply. Oh, oh no, did he make them mad? Ohhhhh he shouldn't have said anything, he should not have said anything. Titan what was he thinking? He and his teachers didn't have to like each other but if he and the Collector were to remain friends they had to at least tolerate each other! He had to be careful, or he could lose them, and he did not want to lose them.

"Sorry-" he said when he finally got a breath back in. "Sorry."

Though that last part the Collector said . . .

"Their . . . heart? Still works?"

[witchnordemon]

Collector paid no mind to Golden Guard's strange noise (another mortal thing, maybe?), but he absolutely frowned at his very similar thought process - that things had changed while Collector had been trapped... a lot. ❝ But that doesn't- it's not- I don't- ❞ He huffed, pouting and pulling on his sleeves as he crossed his arms, ❝ that's what I was thinkin', but that's not possible - Philip doesn't- he wouldn't... just not tell me about the sky changing, or the water changing, or the everything changing! ❞ By this point, his shadowed form had shifted from seated in front of Golden Guard, to traveling aimlessly up and down the walls; almost like he was pacing. ❝ Maybe it's been a long time. Like, so long, and things are... different. B-but, whatever happened, it happened after Philip got here! ❞ They rambled aloud, almost entirely just to reassure themself, about to posit the question to Golden Guard about when these huge changes occurred... when the Grimwalker in front of them (foolishly) doubted their extremely true and totally unbiased claims.

Oh. No way. They hovered above Golden Guard, a pout scowl evident on their face, they drew in a fake breath for effect, and... ❝ Nnnnoooooohhhh you don't get itttt! You've never seen one! ❞ They whined exclaimed, crossing their arms and traveling the floors and walls surrounding the two as they spoke, in spiral patterns; up and down and around. ❝ They don't die! They really don't! They're not like other Isles creatures! They're so powerful, almost as powerful as Collectors - it's why my siblings sent me to come play, they'd make good friends 'cause they're more like us than the other critters here! ❞ He turned to face the Grimwalker from where he was positioned, his shadowed form projecting forth from his disc to the very back wall of the room. ❝ They become all bones, but they're still in there. They're aware of what goes on around them! They're... their, uh, their- ❞ He paused, thumping the center of his chest soundlessly, ❝ that still works! They're different! ❞

Valor made a noise that betrayed his lack of certainty over the Collector's guess. ". . . Would it really be that far? You can't move in the disc, right? And you'd know if someone took you somewhere else? Maybe it's just . . . Maybe things just changed a lot. I mean, like I said when we first met, Lord Belos once sent me back to slay a bunch of stonesleepers when we found a time pool. I've been to the Hecktaceous Period before and that was a lot different than what either of us know and it was between both of our times. Maybe . . . Maybe the Sparkling Sea is the Boiling Sea, just . . . before it started boiling."

Valor sucked in a breath, the wince clear on his face. What the Collector was talking about sounded a lot like death and decomposition, and death didn't seem to be a thing they really knew much about. Definitely not extinction, at least. He'd already had to explain that to them.

Did he really want to tell them, though?

. . . It was important knowledge. None of his teachers ever cared about his feelings when they imparted knowledge, so he shouldn't let that stop him from informing the Collector.

"Collector . . . I'm pretty sure that's what death is. Getting too old to function and just . . . lying down and no longer moving, no longer breathing? Just being incredibly still? And then decomposing until they're only bones? That sounds exactly like dying, Collector."